Should I read the DITHOR books first?

[sted]

In order to do DITHOR with my daughter, should I be reading the books ahead of time (not to screen them but to understand them and help her do the activities)?

Thanks,
Shannon

[sted]

bumping this up

[my3sons]

I do not read them ahead of time, and I've not found that to be a problem at all. At the 2/3 level, the dc read out loud, so then of course I always knew the books well. At the 4/5 level, I still have my ds read a page or so out loud to me, both to keep his oral reading skills, and also so I can see what's going on in the book. I am also a big fan of SKIMMING - right before we begin DITHOR, I try to pick up the book and read a page at the beginning of the day's assignment, and maybe one at the end. I also keep the number of pages short, really to help us linger with the book longer and savor it - but another side benefit is skimming still works and I always still have a general handle on what's going on. Certainly if you have the time and the desire to do so, it wouldn't hurt to read them first! But, I have not found it necessary. I do always use the HOD book selections, so I feel confident they are quality books that won't have any content I disagree with in them. If you are using the DITHOR book packs, I wouldn't worry about reading ahead, since I'd say it's more of an issue of appropriate content if you take the time to skim.

In Christ,
Julie

[momto3girls]

Hmm...are they supposed to be reading the whole assignment aloud in the 2/3 level? I've just been having my dd read a page or two per day. She doesn't *like* to read aloud but she does like this program (and I want to keep it that way )

[my3sons]

Hmm...are they supposed to be reading the whole assignment aloud in the 2/3 level? I've just been having my dd read a page or two per day. She doesn't *like* to read aloud but she does like this program (and I want to keep it that way )

How much dc need to read out loud has a lot to do with what kind of a reader they are, and what stage of reading they are in. If, when you do have her read aloud, she does very well - making few errors, pausing at the right places (i.e. commas, punctuation marks, etc.), and she's reading smoothly - then you probably don't need to have her read it all out loud to you anymore. I pared down the reading out loud to me part near the end of Level 2/3 DITHOR too because I could tell my ds was ready for that. Now, I have my ds in Level 4/5 read just a page or so out loud to me, just to continue to work on his oral reading skills and also so I know what's happening in the book. As far as the oral reading part goes, I'm thinking more of the skills a person needs to read in front of a group for something, etc. than for reading accurately for understanding.

I also like to check to make sure he's pronouncing names correctly, as this becomes increasingly harder to do with higher reading material. (He was saying "Chili" for "Chloe" for a bit - glad I caught that one! We also had the "Revanationary" and the "Silvil" War for a bit earlier on when he first began reading books about wars. It's just good to nip those in the bud right away! ) Anyway, as long as she's reading several pages out loud to you well each day, I think it's fine to back off having her read it all out loud to you; in fact, that's somewhat a signal that she's maturing as a reader, since that is a natural progression when becoming proficient at reading. Depending on her age, if her writing matches her reading ability (and she's in or near the target age range), she may be ready for Level 4/5 soon.

In Christ,
Julie

[momto3girls]

Thanks, Julie. I think I should probably start having her read more to me. She reads pretty good but she tends to skip words small words. Her writing does not match her reading level so I will keep her in level 2/3 next year also. She will be in 4h grade. Writing is frustrating to her for some reason.

Thanks for your advice!

[MamaBear23Cubs]

I love to read and since the DITHOR books are not long, I can read them in one setting, maybe two. DD reads a chapter outloud to me. Some days we will read more than one chapter and take turns reading the chapters. She also has her books that she reads silently on her own time.

[Carrie]

Shannon,

The ladies have done a great job of answering your questions! I'll just pop-in to mention that DITHR is written differently from most of the other programs out there in that it isn't necessary to read the books before your child reads them to make the program work. This is because the questions within DITHR are not "one right answer" type questions. Instead, they are meant to lead the child (not the parent) to go back and dig more deeply into what he/she has already read. The questions are helping the child look beneath the surface to find the book's deeper meaning.

While it is wonderful to read the books our kiddos are reading, it very quickly becomes impossible to keep up with a voracious reader. So, in planning for that.... the ultimate goal of DITHR is to teach kiddos to read with discernment. We train kiddos to compare what they're reading with Biblical character qualitites and to spot any moral issues on their own. This takes the burden off of the parent to be the "imparter of wisdom and virtue" and places that responsibility back with the child to weigh as they read instead with the Bible in hand.

It also helps to have our pre-screened book choices to have a place to begin when selecting books! We pray you'll enjoy your DITHR journey as much as we have.

Blessings,
Carrie